3 definitions found

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

prevalence

noun

1: the quality of prevailing generally; being widespread; "he was surprised by the prevalence of optimism about the future"

2: (epidemiology) the ratio (for a given time period) of the number of occurrences of a disease or event to the number of units at risk in the population

3: a superiority in numbers or amount; "there is a preponderance of Blacks in our prisons" [syn: {preponderance}]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:

Prevalence \Prev"a*lence\, noun [L. praevalentia: cf. F. pr['e]valence. See {Prevail}.] The quality or condition of being prevalent; superior strength, force, or influence; general existence, reception, or practice; wide extension; as, the prevalence of virtue, of a fashion, or of a disease; the prevalence of a rumor.

The duke better knew what kind of argument were of prevalence with him. --Clarendon.

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

117 Moby Thesaurus words for "prevalence": abundance, acceptance, accustomedness, affluence, ample sufficiency, ampleness, amplitude, ascendancy, avalanche, averageness, bon ton, bonanza, bountifulness, bountiousness, bumper crop, common occurrence, commonality, commonness, commonplaceness, confirmedness, control, copiousness, currency, customariness, extensiveness, extravagance, exuberance, fashionableness, fertility, fixedness, flood, flow, foison, frequence, frequency, full measure, fullness, generality, generosity, generousness, great abundance, great plenty, gush, habitualness, incidence, inveteracy, inveterateness, landslide, lavishness, liberality, liberalness, lots, luxuriance, mastery, maximum, modishness, more than enough, much, myriad, myriads, normality, numerousness, oftenness, omnipresence, opulence, opulency, ordinariness, outpouring, overflow, pervasiveness, plenitude, plenteousness, plentifulness, plenty, popularity, practice, predominance, primacy, prodigality, productiveness, profuseness, profusion, quantities, rampantness, reign, relative incidence, repleteness, repletion, rich harvest, rich vein, richness, rifeness, riot, riotousness, routineness, rule, run, scads, settledness, shower, spate, standardness, stream, stylishness, substantiality, substantialness, superabundance, sway, sweepingness, teemingness, ubiquity, universality, usualness, voguishness, wealth, widespreadness, wontedness

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